News Roundup 03 June 2023
Jun 03, 2023 • 5 min Read
Group warns vs Masagana Rice Program, calls it ‘blueprint for bankrupt agri’ | PHILSTAR.COM – MANILA, Philippines — A group of peasant women rallied against President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s recently approved Masagana Rice Program, claiming that it would not result in 97% rice self-sufficiency by 2028 as promised.
Marcos approved the Masagana Rice Industry Development Program on Wednesday with the aim of achieving the highest possible rice sufficiency level through various strategies.
The program is reminiscent of the rice production program “Masagana 99,” which was implemented by Marcos Jr.’ father in 1973.
“Under a liberalized sector dominated by foreign monopoly agro-corporations, the Masagana Rice Program would just be another Marcosian blueprint to promote market-driven and profit-oriented agriculture, export-oriented and import-dependent, for the interest of private sectors and foreign investors,” said Cathy Estavillo, secretary general of the Amihan National Federation of Peasant Women secretary general.
“The Masagana Rice Program will intensify the use of hybrid seeds, fertilizersd and pesticides. With this comes a higher cost of production like the Masagana 99 program of Marcos Sr. that buried farmers deep in debt.”
Instead of subsidies, Estavillo said that peasants will be handed loans should anything negative happen with the program. Amihan also claimed that imperialist agro-corporations, big compradors and landlords would benefit from it instead of poor farmers.
Marcos Jr. currently sits as the Philippines’ secretary of the Department of Agriculture, a position he took to combat the country’s food crisis.
Full Story at: Group warns vs Masagana Rice Program, calls it ‘blueprint for bankrupt agri’ | Philstar.com
Villager dead, 4 hurt in Lamitan gun attack | PHILSTAR.COM – COTABATO CITY, Philippines — A guest in a traditional Yakan child baptismal rite was killed while five others, four of them minors, were badly hurt in a gun attack late Friday in an interior barangay in Lamitan City in Basilan.
Brig. Gen. Alex Nobleza, director of the Police Regional Office-Bangsamoro Autonomous Region, identified the fatality as Amilhassan Asbito, 56, a resident of Sitio Puno Ubag in Barangay Badjah in nearby Tipo-Tipo, Basilan.
Nobleza told reporters here Saturday witnesses have pointed to a certain Arman Misa as responsible for the attack in Barangay Bohe Bessey that also left five other guests to the religious event wounded.
Misa, carrying an M16 assault rifle, reportedly approached the venue of the baptismal activity and opened fire.
Asbito died on the spot from bullet wounds, the Lamitan CPS said in a report to Nobleza.
Full Story at: Villager dead, 4 hurt in Lamitan gun attack | Philstar.com
DOJ chief names ex-usec in Degamo case ‘bribe try’ | INQUIRER.NET – Department of Justice (DOJ) Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla on Friday said a former ranking official of the agency had dangled a hefty sum to the arrested suspects in the assassination of Negros Oriental Gov. Roel Degamo, allegedly in exchange for withdrawing their confessions that also linked Negros Rep. Arnolfo Teves Jr. to the killing.
In a TV interview and later at a media briefing, Remulla pointed to Reynante Orceo, a former justice undersecretary, as the lawyer who allegedly offered P8 million each to the suspects currently detained at the National Bureau of Investigation. Ten former soldiers and a longtime Teves bodyguard are facing murder charges over the March 4 attack on Degamo that also left eight other people dead.
“If I’m not mistaken, the initial report we got was that he was offering them P8 million so they can rest easy concerning their principal who is a congressman and a gambling lord. Eight million each was offered to them so they would make a turnaround on their earlier statements,” Remulla said in an interview on CNN Philippines.
He answered in the affirmative when asked if Orceo was the same “former DOJ undersecretary’’ whom Levito Baligod, a lawyer for the Degamo family, earlier accused in media interviews of trying to bribe the suspects.
The DOJ chief spoke of Orceo in the same vein when speaking to reporters later, adding: “I’ve mentioned him because he walked into the NBI claiming to be the lawyer of Marvin Miranda (the Teves bodyguard) and Miranda denied knowing him in the beginning.’’ In the CNN interview, Remulla went on to recall the “orchestrated recantations” of 10 of the 11 suspects last month.
Full Story at: DOJ chief names ex-usec in Degamo case ‘bribe try’ | Inquirer News
No need for bank loan to rehabilitate hotel Imelda Marcos built — Tacloban mayor | INQUIRER.NET – TACLOBAN CITY — The local government here will no longer borrow money from the bank to rehabilitate the Leyte Park Resort Hotel.
“I went to Landbank two weeks ago to tell them that we don’t need the loan because we have enough money,” said Mayor Alfred Romualdez on Thursday, June 1.
This is in contrast to an earlier plan of the city government to secure a P500 million from the Landbank of the Philippines to renovate the Leyte Park Resort Hotel.
The city government was able to get the go signal from the Tourism Infrastructure and Enterprise Zone Authority (TIEZA), an attached agency of the Department of Tourism which has a stake of the 6.1-hectare property constructed in 1979 by former first lady Imelda Romualdez Marcos, aunt of the city mayor.
Aside from the TIEZA, the property is also owned by the provincial government of Leyte and the Privatization Management Office.
Full Story at: No need for bank loan to rehabilitate hotel Imelda Marcos built — Tacloban mayor | Inquirer News
